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Over 3,770 reviews forSaint Louis Foundation Contractors from people just like you.

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"The initial visit was to evaluate leaks in

, and a follow-up proposal to do some repairs and install a sump system. We have accepted the" ...More proposal. Real work to be done late

.

-James F.

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"They contacted me the same day I purchased a "Big Deal."
The estimate took under 20 minutes and he scheduled the next appointment.
It was raining and" ...More wet, so it had to be rescheduled.
On the day of the appointment, the gentleman was professional. Called me to let me know when he was going to be arriving (early even).
No problems so far (but he told me that he is human and could make a mistake. If there is a problem to just let them know!)

Pouring a foundation is the first critical step in building your home, so make sure you know what to look for if you're hiring a custom builder or doing a portion of the work yourself. Here are some foundation basics.

Angie's Answers

Unfortunately this is not something you will easily resolve; and even if you were to win, the amount of time and funds spent will probably exceed the cost of the actual repair.

Each state has different rules on what "as-is" means, but almost all use the term when it comes to realestate sales. At two years, you are facing a hurdle that any issue could be the result of new conditions, acceptable wear / settlement, etc. Has there been any changes in the area? (New house built next door, new addition, earthquake, flooding, etc?)

While you may have been given a home warranty with the purchase (do check your sales paperwork to see if there is any warranty and what it covers for how long) the house is sold to you as-is; it is your responsibility to raise concerns prior to taking over the house, so going back two years later is a huge up hill batle.

The home inspector is also going to be found faultless, as their reports almost always have words like "consult with an expert. . ." after each report section and they have disclaimers for missed items, etc. I got certified as a home inspector and was surprised at just how little they actually require you to know to become an inspector. They are really just an extra pair of eyes to help inexpereinced home owners look where most people don't look or go. You even mention that the repair work was well masked, so you didn't notice it until you began looking for it. A good inspector might have caught it, but you won't win any court cases proving yours wasn't good enough.

The Seller will claim that any foundation issues were fixed and resolved, which is why they marked "No" on the foundation issue section. They fixed it; so it was no longer an issue. If it came back, that is a new issue. You and I know this is bogus, but to win in court you have to prove intent; and the builder can easily show they thought it was fixed. Or, they might even be able to claim they were unaware - the repairs were from the previous owner, and were hidden so well HE and YOU didn't notice them.

So the next step is to meet with your home insurance agent. As I mentioned above, if there have been any enviromental changes (a new house next door could have changed the underground water table flow or pressures, for example) you may be covered. Even if there are no issues, you still may have a policy that allows for major repairs to be covered after a certian cost threshold, etc. You'd be surprised at what your home owners insurance covers - find out first; they might have in house or low cost engineers who will do the initial inspection, etc. They also will provide advice on your home sale; if they think you have a case against the Seller.

Best of luck on this issue. Make sure any solution you pay for solves the cause (Stress on the wall), and doesn't just fix the results (cracks).

For this type of job, you need plans and specs from an Architectural/Engineering firm before thinking about contractors - and to get a building permit.
Ben's method would work and done incrementally could cost well over $100,000 plus as he says, but this not really the most economic way to approach this big a job. A House Mover or Foundation Underpinning specialty company can usually slide your house onto a whole new foundation, or jack it up on steel beams and hold it there while a basement is dug underneath it, without any intermediate piers. The jacking/move cost would probably be on the order of $30-40,000, and a new basement probably about $40-50,000 - rough ballpark, though I have been involved in some 1000-1500SF single story jobs that went for under $70,000 total.
I have been involved in a fair number of these type jobs - and the way the numbers come out, if there is room on the property to move the house, it is almost always nearly as cheap or cheaper to build an equivalent square footage (basement plus ground level) addition rather than add a basement under the house, and that way your new footage is half above ground so worth more on resale, plus you do not lose use of the house for a month or two. Second cheapest is usually sliding house to a new foundation, if property is large enough to do this - though house is totally cut off from utilities for a week to three. Most expensive, and usually only done in tight city environments or with full 2 story or higher houses, is adding the foundation in place, though your utility interruptions should be on the order of hours at a time rather than days or weeks.
Talk to an architect - I think you will quickly lean towards the addition option rather than adding a basement - it is just too expensive to deepen foundations in most cases, plus you WILL get cracking in the house and possible water and sewer pipe problems in a move/underpinning job, which is not the case with an addition. This become more likely the case since you want to add 8 feet off the back of the home anyway - so why not just enlarge the addition and do it all that way - MUCH simpler, and MUCH less disruption of your life, and you get much higher resale return on your investment.

Foundation Repair reviews in Saint Louis

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Have not had a drop of water in the basement since the job was completed. The entire job from start to finish couldn't have gone more smoothly, and each step went exactly as had been explained. Very professional hard working crew. It's such a relief to no longer have to worry about what was a major problem. Our basement no longer has a "musty" ...More odor and we are enjoying our entire home once again.”

- Elizabeth K.

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The gentlemen arrived on time and was very friendly and professional. I explained my situation. Basically, I have had water leaking into my basement which appeared to be at the wall that my porch is against. I built up the grade and sealed all of the crack in the porch, however, water continued to leak into the basement. During the last rain, I went ...More down stairs and noticed that it was coming in through the sill plate. It did a thorough investigation and concluded that it was not

, but instead it was the flashing. He believes that water is running behind the brick, hitting the sill plate and dripping into the basement.
He could have charge me to divert the water by breaking up the basement floor and installing a sump pump, but he said he would be able to rest at night knowing that he was just putting a band aid on the problem instead of getting at the root cause. I admire his honesty and integrity and for that I would not hesitate to call them in the future or recommend them to someone else.”

- michael L.

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Everything was done to excellent standards in a timely, professional and courteous manner. Prior to work the process was clearly explained and questions answered. I would highly recommend

. The company takes pride in their work and treats their customers like they would want to be treated with respect, knowledge and workmanship.”

- Kristine H.

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“

I had a major crack at the back of my finished basement in which parts of the drywall had dropped at least an inch. In addition my patio had dropped a few inches... The Atlas workers drilled 11 holes in my basement floor and pumped their concrete-like solution to raise and level various areas that had fallen. After they were done the area around the ...More basement was close to being level, but it is close. There was only so much they could do since the area around the bathroom was near a sewer line, but they were able to raise the drywall to the ceiling.. I was surprised at the amount of solution they had to pump under the floor.. After the work was completed the workers cleaned up the area as well as their equipment.. I was impressed as well as things went.... My only complaint was due to a mix up I had to wait over 6 months (the winter months) for the project to start..”

- Mike K.

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It was good. They were very professional. They explained the difference between their type of drain tile. They were knowledgeable and prompt. I had a good price. They did a good job.”

- Sean C.

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It was wonderful. They were here when they said they would be. They did what they said they would do. They were very polite. They cleaned up after themselves. They didn't try to sell me anything I didn't need. I used them because I saw them on Angie's List. I found a small crack so I'm going to call them again.”

- Christine D.

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I have dealt with

in the past for the same problem [cracks in the interior walls] and his suggestion was to have a structural engineer evaluate the situation so I would not have any additional expense for unnecessary work. I did that, followed the engineer's suggestions and some of the problems were solved. I contacted three ...More contractors from Angie's List for exterior piers and received a wide range of cures and a wide range of prices. "

" no longer appears to be on Angie's List and that is too bad. because I chose

because of his honest approach to business, minimal amount of interference in our lives, quality of product, the fact that his product is placed directly under the walls, the holes are hand dug, and the price was in line with quoted per pier price. His office was efficient and contacted me when they thought there was a conflict [it was resolved to my satisfaction]. The workers showed up on the specified date and time, were dressed in appropriate uniform t-shirts, introduced themselves, listened to my concerns and requests, and went to work. They suggested I take pictures of the work and were not concerned with my observance and questions. The work took one half day longer than expected, but there was no additional charge. Once the piers were in place and the holes were ready to be filled, they used a compactor to make sure the dirt was settled. [I had serious problems with a lateral sewer repair that was not compacted]. There was still some extra dirt that they hauled away, but they offered to come back in the future and add dirt if the areas were to settle and expose a sunken area, also at no charge.

”

- Mike A.

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was polite and seemed knowledgeable. He arrived on time, and the work took about the amount of time that he'd said. After I asked, he showed me where to watch some hairline cracks in another part of

.
To be sure there were no more leaks, I waited four months before repairing the water-damaged ...More drywall and carpet. No problems!”